from left field
1
8.0
- idiom
- Informal
:
inesperado
- His idea for a new marketing strategy was completely from left field, but it ended up being a success.
- came from left field
Examples
-
I appreciated the backstory with Mystique and Charles, but it came completely from left field.
Blog text (33) -
The announcement of the merger came from left field, catching everyone by surprise.
-
You sure hauled that in from left field.
-
When she suddenly changed careers, it felt like a decision that came from left field to all her friends.
Synonyms
∞
2.3
Unusual and slightly odd in a way you cannot easily understand
798
1.0
Different from what is normal or expected
433
1.8
Causing surprise because it is not expected
392
2.5
Happening without warning
170
4.2
Happening suddenly without any warning
48
4.1
Not usual and different from what people expect
7
8.0
Strange and often funny in a surprising way
5
7.4
An unexpected, unusual idea or remark that surprises people
1
7.1
To appear suddenly as a surprising solution or idea
1
6.3
Not usual and often interesting or surprising
1
9.9
Not usual or expected in a situation
Something surprising and out of place in a situation
Antonyms
How Unexpected
Surface Forms
Morphology
The literal components 'from' (origin) + 'left' + 'field' describe a spatial origin but do not convey the sense 'unexpected' to a learner who only knows the words. The idiomatic meaning (likely from baseball usage) is metaphorical and language-specific, so a B1 learner would not reliably infer 'surprising' from the constituents alone.
Etymology
From left field may come from baseball. The left field is away from the main action, so a ball or shout from there would surprise players, and that image makes the phrase mean 'unexpected' or 'surprising'.